Dubbed "x-woman" by the researchers, despite its undetermined gender, the pinky owner may have belonged to an archaic human species such as Homo erectus or Homo heidelbergensis, known only from fossils, or an unknown pre-human species.

The owner of a 40,000-year-old pinky bone may have belonged to an archaic human species known only from fossils such as Homo heidelbergensis, shown as a bust above, or Homo erectus, or a completely unknown pre-human species.

The hand axe likely spread out of Africa in the hands of Homo erectus or a related early human species, long-faced fellows that were also thought the first species to master fire, far earlier than had been thought likely.

Our ancestors spread out to colonize the Earth during the last 60,000 years or so, outcompeting archaic species such as Homo erectus and the big-brained Neanderthals though if you are European, Asian, or New Guinean, you may have a trace of Neanderthal blood racing through your veins.